NL
Nico L

1 reviews | Active since Sept 2012

06 Nov 2018, 14:25

Two bad experiences. Stay away!

In April 2018 I had my eyes tested at The Sanctuary Optometrist in The Sanctuary Shopping Centre, Somerset West. I explained to the staff that I needed at least a test pair of contact lenses before a certain date as I was flying to Thailand and would need to use the lenses there. I told them that if they can't deliver I would need to look for someone who can. They said I need not worry, they'll have test lenses ready before my flight. One day before my flight I was getting anxious and decided to give them a call as I haven't heard anything from them. They told me my test lenses would only be ready the following week. Needless to say, I had to go on holiday without contact lenses.

A few months later I had to have new eyeglasses made. I decided to not have them made at The Sanctuary Optometrist because I could not trust their service anymore. I did, however, decide to use the prescription they gave me as I had obviously already spent money on the eye test.

After receiving my new eyeglasses I realised something was wrong as I couldn't see as well as expected with them. I returned to the optometrist who made the new lenses and asked them to look into it. They immediately offered to give me a complimentary eye test in order to assist me in getting to the bottom it. The new eye test then yielded a completely different prescription as the one I received from The Sanctuary Optometrist.

I then decided to inform The Sanctuary Optometrist of the situation. The optometrist at The Sanctuary Optometrist completely refused to take responsibility for the wrong prescription she provided. She said it was the responsibility of the optometrist who made the lenses to test my eyes before making them. She basically made a scapegoat of the fact that I opted to not spend money on having my eyes tested a second time.

The optometrist where I had the lenses made offered to make new ones for me at 60% discount. I will recommend their service to anyone and will never make use of The Sanctuary Optometrist again. The staff at The Sanctuary Optometrist have no intention of keeping customers happy it seems.

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Replies (5)
The Sanctuary Optometrist
The Sanctuary Optometrist's reply08 Nov 2018, 12:37
Official
 Morning Mr Lourens, we really regret that your experience at Sanctuary Optometrist was not a positive one. We strive to always give the best service and will look into this matter.Thank you for bringing it to our attention. We will be in contact with you to find a solution. 
NL
Nico L's update15 Nov 2018, 16:17
Reviewer Update
A week later and no feedback yet.
The Sanctuary Optometrist
The Sanctuary Optometrist's reply16 Nov 2018, 11:12
Official
Hi Mr Lourens

I have been investigating. The contact lenses being late was totally out of the practices hand. The supplier had to get the trials from abroad. This can take two to three weeks normally. The trials arrived on the day you left for your holiday and the staff could not manage, after many attempts, to get hold of you.

On the spectacles, I can unfortunately not comment, until we can test both sets of lenses made by the other Optometrist, to compare apples with apples. 

We do however insist, when someone brings a prescription from another optometrist, especially if the script is older that 4 months, to do a no charge check to make sure the script is correct. Certain conditions and situations can change a persons eyes in a matter of months. It seems the other Optometrist did not check the prescription before the spectacles was made.

Please bring your spectacles in so we can assess and continue further.
NL
Nico L's update16 Nov 2018, 14:05
Reviewer Update
Contact lenses - You're lying. No one called me on the day of my flight. As I said, I had to call your offices the day before my flight because I haven't heard from anyone by then. The fact that the lenses were late is not the issue here, but the fact that no one called me to tell me about it and the fact that you're now lying about it shows exactly why I decided to not use your services again. Spectacles - When I asked the lady at your offices if me obtaining and showing her the new (and correct) prescription would make any difference to my case she said: "no, but I'd like to see where the mistake was made". So, if you still want the new prescription to see where you made a mistake feel free to get it from Mellins in Somerset Mall yourself. If you really wanted to sort this out you would have phoned me the same day as my complaint, apologised and then asked me for the new prescription so you can investigate. Also, if you're so eager to sort this out why does it take you longer than a week to respond? It is evident that your answers in this thread are merely to try and save face, nothing more.
The Sanctuary Optometrist
The Sanctuary Optometrist's reply16 Nov 2018, 14:52
Official
Hi Mr Lourens

I am sorry that you are not happy with the service you got. We wish you only the best for the future. I do not know what you want from us, because as I said, a script should be checked if it is a few months old. We even check our own scripts if a person only has their glasses made in a few months. We can not take responsibility for them not doing it. Please accept my regret that you are unhappy and all the best for the future.